Fortune Cookies
by Minako Miharu
Summary: Drabbles written for Forthright's Fortune Cookie Challenge, starring various characters from InuYasha.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_One who admires you greatly is hidden before your eyes_.

Perhaps his pack would never understand why he felt that he had to constantly prove his true devotion to his woman. _His woman_, though in truth she had never agreed to it nor had she even truly encouraged his claim save for never in fact disputing it either. InuYasha would dispute it as fast as he could draw breath to shout it, but until he heard the words from her singular lips he would never release hope. What his greatest fear was would have surprised any that knew him, most would have said that he only feared failing in his oath of revenge upon Naraku.

Kouga of the Yourouzoku feared that Kagome would never see him. Oh she saw him alright, every time that he would come up to the group she traveled with in his whirlwind of impressive speed and demonic puissance, and he'd even once been told that she knew always when she sensed his two shards of the Jewel that it was him and not some other youkai that had been lucky in its scavenging for power. Yet he also knew that she did not really see him, not the way that a woman does her man.

Always, always that half-inuyoukai with his brash nature and robe of the Fire Rat stood between them and he filled her eyes with silver hair and golden gaze, filled her with empathy for his life. But what was worse was what Kouga saw what else he filled her with, which was sadness and tears. Loyalty and love should never be repaid with such a coin, it made mock of the true worth of the gift. He would give everything he owned to gain even a fraction of the regard that InuYasha had, and everything that he might own for the rest of his days.

The worst had been of course something he himself had been guilty of in the beginning. He had heard a shouting match betwixt the two in which Kagome had tearfully told InuYasha that she was more than just a shard detector, and a wave of shame had kept the proud Prince in the shadows, undetected by the fighting pair in their intense focus upon the other. After all, had he not himself taken her from her companions because he'd found out that she could see the Shards which he sought to use to protect his pack?

It was that which he sought the hardest to overcome, to make her see that to him she was always and forever more than just someone with the chance ability to see what had been shattered and scattered to be taken up and abused or used. If only he understood that the shroud of vision that separated the pair worked both ways, his instincts would serve him in unraveling what maze kept him from truly calling her his woman and kept her from simply saying … "I am."

AN:

Word Count 498


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Something you lost will soon turn up._

It was the barest flaring of nostrils and easy to miss even if one knew him well enough to interpret his body language. The wind stirred the straight fall of his long silver hair but it did not bring to his keen senses what he sought and thus fell into his immediate disfavor. A slight movement turned his head, almost as if he were paying attention to the diminutive figure of the Kappa that served him as he wheedled for mercy at his feet, but that was not what he sought to hear. Yet it was enough that he actually spoke to him.

"Jaken you will cease."

The chill in his tone was unmistakable even if his words were a bit unclear to Jaken. Did his Lord mean that he should cease talking or cease existing? It was enough to make his hands shake as he held the Staff of Two Heads, but he was silent as long as he could be. He watched in fearful awe as Sesshoumaru executed a full body turn in almost imperceptible slow motion and at last the wind finally ceased to be in his disfavor as he caught the scent he had been searching for. He immediately moved forward then without explanation to his servant and for once Jaken did not beg for one because he knew full well what Sesshoumaru was seeking.

It did not help that she had been under his watch when she vanished and that he'd had no idea where she had gone. If only she hadn't always been so annoying he might have been paying closer attention to her babblings about what she was doing! Such an easy mental shift to make it the fault of the girl for him but he knew that shift would not occur in the mind of his Lord. He had been given a job and failed to do it and now would remain to be seen what his punishment was.

Yet despite his normal vocal objections to her presence he found himself missing her, not that he would admit it to anyone, and he wondered as well if that were true for his Lord. It might make sense, might explain why he would even bother to seek for her if she were lost, why he had sworn to slay Naraku for daring to use her against him. Perhaps he cared for her in a way; otherwise he would simply have disposed of her as a liability. Or perhaps it was simply that she was His and what was His remained so until he had no more want of it.

Finally a tired little girl had made her way through some underbrush ahead of them on the path, her arms full of the things she had gotten apparently from a nearby human settlement from a kindly old woman. She was allowed to stow them away with Ah-Un, and then Sesshoumaru sniffed just a little.

"Rin, you worried Jaken."

A ghost of a smile hovered at Sesshoumaru's lips as he watched his Rin chase Jaken around so that she could hug him in apology for her absence and he took a deeper breath now that the scents he was accustomed to were all back in place. Despite his goals and desires he was very much a creature of habit and did not like it when things were lost to him.

AN: Word Count 572


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_If your desires are not extravagant, they will be granted_.

First he straightened the bow that held his hair in its customary way, taking a few extra moments to make sure that it was perfectly centered before smoothing his little hands over his vest, taking a deep breath before twitching his tail to poof it just right. He took one more look in the still water of the bucket he was using as a mirror in the morning light and it was all he could do not to dance with nervousness and excitement.

He didn't think it would be any different than it ever was, but his father always taught him that when dealing with females one should always look at the least presentable and he supposed that advice worked just as well with human females as it did with youkai ones. It was the wait really that made him that exquisite combination of emotions that he currently was, hope excitement and nerves all warring for dominance.

Would she or wouldn't she? Did she remember or did the desire to fulfill InuYasha's wishes make her lose sight of all else? Finally that sweetest thing came to him, the scent of his adored one carried on the breeze to fill his twitching nostrils and make the vivid green of his eyes sparkle and shine as he launched himself from the rail of the fence towards her, arms outstretched to slide perfectly around her neck as he buried his nose against her skin with a cry of her name like it was his very salvation.

"KAGOMEEEEE!"

Her voice held her own affection for him, how could he have ever doubted? And then there it was, what he had waited and hoped for, unwrapped and popped firmly in his mouth. Kagome _always_ remembered his candy, after all it was his sole true desire.

AN: Word Count 310


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Your everlasting patience will be rewarded sooner or later._

He was not really the patient sort at all. He had been on more than one occasion been told that he was prone to thinking with his fists over his head, with his sword over his heart. But most of them really didn't understand what the sword meant to him.

They that called themselves his friends knew of course that without the sword he ran the risk of becoming a true nightmare, the strength of his youkai blood being a bit of a curse in and of itself simply because it was so strong. Other, lesser hanyou did not have such a problem, this was his personal hell because his father may just have been the strongest youkai to ever walk the mortal realms.

He was not really the patient sort at all, if he had any patience in him it was because of the slender girl that walked beside him. Of all the wonderful things that life had unexpectedly dropped on him few that they were she ranked at the top of the list. She promised to always be beside him and she had even when he'd hurt her.

His ears drooped just slightly as he thought of that, even at his worst he never wanted to hurt her and she was just as much a treasure to him as the sword his father left him. More so perhaps because while the sword kept him sane and granted him great powers with its attacks, it was not warm and did not look at him with that look of trust and love, it did not give him what Kagome did.

He'd never told her out loud at least what she really meant to him. Words were not his strong suit as his actions spoke far more eloquently and to the point in his mind. But for her he mumbled softly as he reached for her hand, an answer of sorts to a comment that Sango had made about the Tessaiga meaning more to him than Kagome.

"She ain't right, Kagome."

The smile that suddenly lit her soft lips was his reward just as his awkward words were hers. She knew what he meant and knew that her patience with dealing with InuYasha's emotions was finally beginning to pay off.

AN: Word Count 388


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Good luck is the result of good planning._

The day had been hot and uncomfortable with air sticky and heavy with the promise of rain though the clouds were little more than occasional shadings from the sun overhead. Kagome was obviously miserable though she kept her complaining to a minimum other than her sighs of distress, and Shippou was passed out in her arms in an uncomfortable sleep. Kilala's twin tails were drooping as she followed the normally stoic Sango, and even she was wiping sweat from her brow with the back of her arm from time to time.

InuYasha of course was uncomfortable as well in his heavy robes but he would be the last to say something about it especially after the tirade he'd had when they had stopped for lunch. They were pursuing a rather strong rumor of a group of demons that had several Shards amongst them and were supposedly working together to gain more as well as make the lives of the people and youkai that lived around them miserable and InuYasha wanted to get those Shards, kill the demons, and move on. He was near unreasonable at times when they had as solid a lead as this one and often had to be reminded that the others were not as strong as he was.

For once he hadn't called them weak humans for being sapped by the heat, which told Miroku volumes about how miserable the hanyou must be himself though he had continued to gripe about the delay except for those moments which he filled his mouth with food. Miroku himself retained a rather serene expression despite how rumpled his own black and purple robes were becoming and the sweat that was running down his back. He was serene because he knew something that the rest of them didn't.

Miroku had recognized the area they were traveling through about an hour ago and knew just what he was going to do, though he hadn't mentioned it yet. He began gently steering where they were going by interjecting a comment here and there and heading off in seemingly random directions but as long as they were moving forward no one really seemed to notice. As it grew dark and still remained hot and uncomfortable he heard the resigned sighs of both Kagome and now Sango, thinking that they would have to spend the night outside and couldn't help the small smile that came to his lips.

When he led them down into the decent sized village that small smile grew a moment as he looked at the expressions of relief on their faces, even InuYasha had released his scowl as he realized that he would not have to bear the complaints of his group tonight at least, and he refrained from his usual disparagement of Miroku's sudden sensing of a 'dark aura' around the house of the richest person in the village. As for Miroku he allowed himself the pleasure of knowing that a little planning and a good memory was as good as the best lucky break at times.

AN: Word Count 516


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Your ability to juggle many tasks will take you far._

She hummed as she stirred the ingredients that were merrily sizzling in her skillet with one hand and finished adjusting the spices in the Oden that was nearly finished in the pot to her left. The heavenly aromas of a home cooked meal were filling the kitchen and her smile was soft and genuine as she worked.

She loved her family very much and did all she could to support them all in whatever ways they needed most, though thankfully neither her son Souta or her father needed quite so much support as the one who would be joining them for dinner tonight. It was why of course she was going all out, fixing all her daughter's favorites because she knew that for tonight at least she would be home and home should always be such a welcoming place.

Who would ever have thought that it would be her happy vibrant daughter who would amongst the family be given such a burden, such a fated task? A sigh threatened to overcome her happy industry but then a thought made her laugh softly as she looked out the kitchen window, catching sight of a pair of figures making their way towards the home.

It was a gentle reminder to her that her daughter while burdened did not carry her task alone, that there was a staunch supporter to protect her and dare she hope love her daughter the way that Kagome deserved so much. As a reward for him she turned slightly to add the ready noodles to an already boiling pot of water, because even with all the delicious food she was making she knew he would want them, and it was such a simple request that she could never forget it if she knew he was coming.

It was a lot to do all at once to have it all ready for that moment that she would hear her daughter's cheerful _Taidama_! at the door while she paused to remove her dusty shoes, but her wide smile and happy squeal to discover that her mother had made Oden and chocolate cake along with the busy adorable twitching of InuYasha's nose as he joyfully discovered that there was ramen too made it all worth it.

AN: Word Count 385


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Love is for the lucky and the brave._

He liked to think that he had a remarkable memory despite the pauses he often had while attempting to relate a story of the history of the venerable shrine that he lived in and served as a Priest, yet he found that even he wasn't certain when that woman had begun spending time around him. He referred to her as 'that woman' for a very long pair of months because it had taken her that long to properly introduce herself and yet he found himself unable to remember her full name and was reduced despite his amazing memory to calling her Midi-san.

She on the other hand had taken to calling him Jii-kun as if they were schoolmates of Kagome's age and while he couldn't help the way his cheeks pinked when she did it he would grouse a bit and turn up his nose and suffer her infernal soft laugh every time that he did so. She seemed to think that was the most adorable thing and would seem to go out of her way to make him do it, following him about while he kept up the Shrine grounds and walking with him when he gave the daily tours to visitors, and she had even taken up helping him sell the charms and souvenirs in the little gift shop though for some reason the Sacred Jewel key chains seemed to make her sad.

She was there for a bit when the Goshinbuko bloomed for the first time in centuries, and she came with hot food for he and Souta when it tragically snowed and she sat with him during the cold night while he prayed and hoped for the best. He found then that night that his heart had not forgotten how to love someone that was not related to him, he found that even at his age and all he had lost that he was able to at least fall in love once more. He would never have thought that such luck would ever come to him again, for deep down he often felt that it had been sheer luck that brought his first love to him all those years ago.

He wondered often if his Midi-san felt the same about him until one late summer evening when they finished cleaning up from a Festival the day before she sat with him sipping chilled tea and looking up at what stars they could see and without looking over at him she began to softly speak.

"I often thought that I would never find someone to love me, Jiji-kun. For as you know I am a contrary woman with my own ways and it is hard for a man to accept me as I am, exactly as I am, yet … yet I think you have?"

He was silent a moment and then set his glass of tea down by his feet and he turned a bit to her to take her slim hand. It was soft in his despite the feel of callous on her fingertips, he knew that she knew the traditions and could shoot a bow and write Sutras, he had more than once lamented that hers seemed more effective than his own. But now that hand which had been strong was soft and gentle as his fingers held hers, and he did the bravest thing he thought that he perhaps ever had.

"You have, Midi-san."

The sparkle of joy that came to her eyes made her look so much younger in that moment, and while he felt and always had that she had aged beautifully he caught a glimpse there for a moment of the strength and beauty that she must have had in her youth. For her his quiet return smile showed her what she had always known, that within this modern Priest there lay the bravery and loyalty that she had always sought. So it was that when Midoriko's last incarnation laid her head upon his shoulder under the starlight that at long last she felt the peace she had yearned for, and the love she had long deserved.

AN: Word Count 695


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked!

_Your many hidden talents will become obvious to those around you._

She handed him a bowl of rice with some sort of meat and vegetables with it, and it made him look up at her with a slight expression of surprise. His expression changed rarely enough that it made her pause with an arched brow as she looked back at him. He turned his attention to the food then, at first eating it quickly the way someone not sure when he would have hot food again often will.

Then he slowed down to actually _enjoy_ what it was that he was shoveling into his mouth, because surprisingly enough it was really good, the flavors delicate and the herbs she had used enhanced both the meat and the root vegetables she had found. It became obvious to him that she had taken a bit of time with this dish, the pieces were all of even size as well, the mark of someone that cared about the results of what she cooked.

When he was finished he sat the bowl down before him and gave a bow of thanks to her, a very rare smile touching his thin lips, the pleasure of a full belly and warm feeling making his brown eyes dance just a bit. She often surprised him in those moments where he was more himself, because while he would never tell of it she was often far kinder to him than anyone would have imagined that someone like she could be.

"Thank you Kagura, that was really good."

She gave him a tiny smile in return, and that was nearly as rare and good as the food she had cooked for him.

AN: Word Count 283


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of InuYasha, they belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi. This was written in response to Forthright's Fortune Cookie Drabble Challenge and hopefully the inspiration will last long enough to get me through the ones I've picked! Last one folks and I hope you enjoy it and the rest of them!

_Be mischievous and you will not be lonesome._

He sighed a gusty sigh, he had been left alone once again to watch Rin while his master Lord Sesshoumaru was off doing whatever it was that he had deemed too dangerous to have them along. He was of course stuck here with that human child, indignity piled upon indignity.

She was doing cartwheels in the field now and he watched her go back and forth before he suddenly stood, looking around both ways to make sure that _no one _except perhaps Ah-Un would see it and then the little kappa cracked his knuckles, bent, and then stood up on his hands.

"Rin! Rin! Bet you can't do this one!"

She halted her spins to gape at Master Jaken, suddenly giggling because his robes had slipped down to show his ankles and avowing that yes she could so do it, spending the next half an hour trying while Jaken walked around her poking her sides to make her giggle and waver in her stance.

That mischievous smile that came to his green face told the true tale, he was having fun and while he would never admit it this little human girl had given him a great gift. Someone to care about him, and someone to care about that was not afraid to tell him.

AN: Aw, Rin! Word Count 223


End file.
